Bob Shuman is chairman of the 2014 North American International Auto Show. A third-generation auto dealer, he is president of Shuman Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Walled Lake.

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Detroit Free Press Business Writer

Bob Shuman, 52

Title: Owner of Shuman Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep Ram in Walled Lake and chairman of the 2014 North American International Auto Show. Education: Accounting degree from Michigan State University, law degree from University of Michigan. Favorite alma mater: “I root for both schools but at the end of the day, I bleed green.” Family: Wife, Sherry; son Ethan; daughter, Hannah.

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As chairman of the 2014 North American International Auto Show, Bob Shuman has traveled to Shanghai, Frankfurt and Paris to observe other major auto shows and to cultivate relationships with automakers.

“There is a lot of travel involved — more travel than I have ever done in my life,” Shuman said.

Next month’s Detroit auto show is expected to offer more than 40 global debuts of new or redesigned cars and trucks, a testament to the expanding automotive industry and Shuman’s ability to close the deal.

But that travel comes at a price. The chairmen of the Detroit auto show — among the largest international auto shows in the world — dedicate countless hours to volunteer positions.

The North American International Auto Show is produced by the Detroit Auto Dealers Association. While Rod Alberts, as president of DADA, oversees the show, the association appoints two auto dealers to assist with the planning, sales, marketing and all other aspects of the show.

Shuman, 52, said he could not have accepted the role without support from his family.

Shuman said his father, Richard Shuman, who is 86, and longtime general manager Joe Zeigler helped to run Shuman Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Walled Lake when he has been away.

“I have been very lucky,” Shuman said. “If my kids were younger, I would not have taken this position.”

Shuman said his son, who is in college, and his daughter, who is in high school, were old enough to understand and adjust to his travel schedule.

His main goal as chairman of the auto show is to raise more than $4 million from Charity Preview — the one-night black-tie gala that precedes the public days of the auto show. Last year, the event raised $3.9 million for nine local children’s charities.

Shuman did not take the typical path to owning and operating a dealership. Even though Richard Shuman founded the dealership in 1955, his son pursued a career as a lawyer.

Bob Shuman graduated from Michigan State University with an accounting degree in 1983 and from the University of Michigan Law School in 1986. For more than a decade, Shuman practiced law with Beier Howlett in Bloomfield Hills.

“It was important for me. I wanted my own career,” Shuman said.

But he had second thoughts in April 1997 when his father said he wanted to retire. That would have forced a sale of the family business.

“There is a crazy emotional family attachment I have for the place, and just the thought of selling it and not having it in the family anymore was something I could not bear.”

Shuman resigned from Beier Howlett and spent a year learning the business from his father before taking over in 1998. Looking back, he sees parallels between practicing law and selling cars.

“It’s all about trying to help people — that’s what I tell my employees here,” Shuman said. “We are here to help people. We are here to fix their car or get them into the right new car.”